Dal dhokli

Name: Dal dhokli
Total time: 50 min
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: 150 g toor dal; 30 g peanuts, raw; 4 ml turmeric; ≈ 500 ml water, for the cooker; 150 g atta, for the dhokli; 2 tbsp besan; 1 tsp red chilli powder; 1 ml ajwain; salt, to taste; 1 tbsp refined oil, for the dough; ≈ 80 ml water, for the dough; 1 tomato, chopped; 2 green chillies, finely chopped; 1 tsp ginger, grated; 3 tbsp jaggery, grated; 1 tsp coriander powder; ≈ 1 l water, hot, to thin the dal; 2 tbsp ghee, for the tadka; 1 tsp mustard seeds; 3 ml cumin, seeds; 1 ml fenugreek seeds; 4 cloves; 2 g cinnamon, 1 small stick; 2 dried red chillies; 1 sprig curry leaves; 1 ml hing (asafoetida); 1 lemon (nimbu), juiced; 10 g coriander leaves, chopped; 1 ½ tbsp ghee, to serve

Gujarat's one-pot dinner: thin, sweet-sour toor dal with jaggery, lemon and peanuts, tempered with mustard seeds, cloves and cinnamon in ghee, with pieces of spiced wheat dough (dhokli) cooked right in it. Eaten hot from a bowl with a spoon of ghee on top. It has no onion or garlic; a Jain home just leaves out the ginger, and many sour it with kokum instead of lemon. Maharashtra's varan phal is a close cousin.

50 minTime
35 minHands-on
4Portions
16 gprotein per portion
510kcal per portion

VegetarianContains: Peanuts, Gluten, Milk protein, Mustard

Ingredients for 4 portions

150 gToor dal
30 gPeanuts, raw
4 mlTurmeric
≈ 500 mlWater, for the cooker
150 gAtta, for the dhokli
2 tbspBesan
1 tspRed chilli powder
1 mlAjwain
to tasteSalt
1 tbspRefined oil, for the dough
≈ 80 mlWater, for the dough
1Tomato, chopped
2Green chillies, finely chopped
1 tspGinger, grated
3 tbspJaggery, grated
1 tspCoriander powder
≈ 1 lWater, hot, to thin the dal
2 tbspGhee, for the tadka
1 tspMustard seeds
3 mlCumin, seeds
1 mlFenugreek seeds
4Cloves
2 gCinnamon, 1 small stick
2Dried red chillies
1 sprigCurry leaves
1 mlHing (asafoetida)
1Lemon (nimbu), juiced
10 gCoriander leaves, chopped
1 ½ tbspGhee, to serve

Method

Wash the toor dal 2–3 times and put it in the pressure cooker with the peanuts, two-thirds of the turmeric and the water.
Pressure-cook on medium for 4 whistles, about 15 minutes, and let the pressure drop by itself.
Meanwhile, make the dhokli dough: mix the atta, besan, the rest of the turmeric, half the red chilli powder, the ajwain, a little salt and the oil, then knead with the water into a firm, smooth dough.
Divide the dough into 3 balls and roll each out thin, like a large chapati. Cut into 3–4 cm diamonds with a knife and spread them out on a plate so they don't stick together.
Chop the tomato and green chillies, and grate the ginger and jaggery.
Open the cooker, whisk the dal smooth and tip it into a wide pot. Add the hot water, tomato, green chillies, ginger, jaggery, the rest of the red chilli powder, the coriander powder and salt, and bring to a rolling boil.
For the tadka, heat the ghee for the tadka in a small pan and add the mustard seeds. When they splutter, add the cumin, methi seeds, cloves, cinnamon, dried red chillies, curry leaves and hing, and pour it straight into the dal.
With the dal boiling, drop in the dhokli a few at a time, stirring gently so they don't stick together.
Simmer for 12–15 minutes, stirring now and then, until the dhokli are cooked through and the dal has thickened.
Stir in the lemon juice and coriander leaves. Serve hot in bowls with a teaspoon of ghee on each.

Dal dhokli

Ingredients for 4 portions

Method

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